Business in the Community and the Employees in the Community Network are jointly hosting a one-day conference entitled Building a skilled Workforce, to look at exploring ways of advancing staff development through Employee Community Involvement as well as highlighting examples of best practice and showcasing award-winning programmes. The conference is targeted at HR and Community Affairs professionals and will take place on the 30 January, at Regents College, London.

The keynote speakers Dr Kim Howells MP Minister for Corporate Social Responsibility and David Coles Managing Director DHL International (UK) Plc, will introduce experts in the field of Employee Community Involvement. There will be a range of workshops including Team Building, Developing Personal Effectiveness, Executive Succession, and an update on HR Research.

The results of an evaluation of the Partners in Leadership programme will be discussed and delegates will also receive a copy of the excellent new Whitbread publication 'Making it Happen - A complete guide to involving employees in the community'.

Business the Community is a unique movement of companies across the UK committed to improving continually their positive impact on society, with a core membership of 650 companies. The Employees in the Community Network (EitCN), based at the National Centre for Volunteering, aims to promote employee volunteering as a key part of corporate community involvement. It also aims to promote best practice within member organisations and more widely across the sector, and to influence aspects of social policy nationally. Both organisers say that experience and research over the last ten years show that involvement in community projects is a highly effective means of developing skills, which complements and enhances more traditional training methods.

For more information or to book your place please contact Cathy McBain, Tel. 020 7520 8959 or e-mail Volunteering@thecentre.org.uk.